Royal Princess makes her debut Down Under

Sydney has welcomed a new royal visitor this morning, with Princess Cruises’ spectacular Royal Princess sailing into the city’s harbour for its inaugural season of cruising from Australia.

Measuring 330 metres in length, and 19 decks high, the 3560-guest ship will be based in Sydney until April next year, offering 14 round trip cruises from the city during its six-month deployment Down Under.

Princess Cruises senior vice president Asia Pacific, UK + Europe Stuart Allison said the cruise line is thrilled to welcome Royal Princess to its Australian fleet this summer. The ship will sail in local waters with Coral Princess, Majestic Princess and Grand Princess.

“Royal Princess set new standards for premium cruising when it was launched and continues to turn heads wherever she sails around the globe,” Allison said.

“Not only is she a fantastic looking ship, she’s packed with wonderful features for guests, from superb cuisine to world-class entertainment and facilities. We know guests will especially love the Sanctuary and Retreat areas over the summer season.”

Royal Princess will sail in Australasian waters with Coral Princess, which returned from her Round World Cruise to Sydney on September 20, Grand Princess, which spent Saturday (October 21) in Sydney’s harbour, Majestic Princess, arriving in Sydney on November 4 as well as Island Princess calling into the Harbour City on Valentine’s Day February 14, 2024.

“We’ll have 44 per cent more guest capacity than last season and 85 per cent more guests passing through Sydney, making this the biggest summer season in Australia Princess has ever had,” Allison said.

“The vast majority of guests disembarking today are international so today is sure to be a multi-million dollar day in economic contribution to the state of NSW and setting the industry on the way to exceed the $5.6b of economic contribution last year.”

Royal Princess’ arrival in Sydney today marks the end of its inaugural 27-night transpacific crossing from Vancouver, Canada. The ship will sail from Sydney this evening on it first Australian voyage – a 10-night roundtrip cruise to Queensland, making maiden calls to Brisbane, Cairns, the Whitsundays and Port Douglas.

“We’re excited to have such an impressive regal visitor in our waters this summer and look forward to welcoming our New Zealand guests on board,” Allison added.

Allison added that Princess will continue its popular Across the Ditch program on all Princess ships sailing to New Zealand.

“We’ll be revealing some new features and exciting product enhancements to the program highlighting authentic cuisine and local entertainment. These fantastic guest experiences bring the best of New Zealand onboard further showcasing our leadership in this magnificent and much-loved destination,” Allison said.

(Featured Image: Royal Princess at Sydney Harbour on her maiden season in Australia – Princess Cruises)